After inspecting a warship... Kim emphasizes the need to strengthen maritime nuclear deterrence

SadaNews - North Korean leader Kim Jong Un visited the naval destroyer "Kang Gon" to oversee a navigation test, as reported by the official Korean Central News Agency today (Saturday), emphasizing the necessity of enhancing the navy's capability to deter a nuclear war.

This comes with the announcement from Beijing and Pyongyang that Chinese President Xi Jinping will visit North Korea between June 8 and 9, following Xi hosting two consecutive summits with U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin last month.

In recent years, Kim has pledged to strengthen North Korea's naval capabilities, and in May of last year, he oversaw the failed launch of the destroyer "Kang Gon," which was subsequently repaired and relaunched a month later.

During his visit on Thursday, Kim underscored the importance of rapidly developing naval forces to become a "reliable" component of nuclear war deterrence, according to the official news agency.

Kim stated that building a naval fleet capable of delivering a "decisive strike" against enemies above and below water represents a fundamental goal of the ruling party's current five-year defense development plan.

Photos released by the agency showed the North Korean leader visiting the ship accompanied by senior officials and his daughter Ju Aei.